New media and competition: printing and Europe's transformation after Gutenberg

作者：Jeremiah Dittmar, Skipper Seabold · 发表于：London School of Economics and Political Science Research Online (London School of Economics and Political Science) · 年份：2019 · 被引用次数：20 · 研究领域：Culture, Economy, and Development Studies

We study the role of book content in economic, religious, and institutional development after the introduction of printing, and the role of competition in determining the amount and content of local printing. We focus on (1) business education content and (2) religious ideas during the Protestant Reformation. We construct data on printing output and competition in European cities 1454-1600.We document positive relationships between business education content and city growth, and Protestant content and institutional change. We find competition predicts content. We confirm the relationships between competition, content, and outcomes using printer deaths as a source of exogenous variation.